_{Thumbnail photo courtesy of GoFundMe}

Five days after a “bomb-like device” exploded in his hand, Jason Turner is still being treated for his injuries at U.C. Davis Medical Center in Sacramento.

“Jason is doing well,” his girlfriend, Pamala Ganfield, told Redwood Voice Community News on Friday. “He had another surgery the day before yesterday (that) took about an inch more of his forearm.”


Ganfield and Turner were picking up spent fireworks at Point St. George at about 3 p.m. Sunday when he found what appeared to be a ball-shaped object with a nail sticking out of it. The item exploded when Turner picked it up. It sounded like a bomb, Ganfield said. Her boyfriend was on the ground bleeding.

Doctors amputated Turner’s left hand. According to a Wednesday update on a GoFundMe page created by his daughter, he is still being treated for damage to his eyes. Turner’s hearing has also been impacted by the explosion.

Following the explosion, Ganfield said the Del Norte County Sheriff’s deputy who responded to the incident questioned her story for about 20 minutes. According to Ganfield, they asked her if she and Turner brought the object with them.

Ganfield said she went to the beach with deputies to show them where the explosion took place, leaving Turner at the hospital. By that time, the water had risen significantly, she said.

According to Sheriff Garrett Scott, his deputies were concerned about public safety. If Turner and Ganfield hadn’t brought the item with them, he said, there might be more devices on the beaches.

DNSO deputies have been combing local beaches using the department’s ATVs since Sunday. So far, they haven’t found anything similar to the device that caused Turner’s injuries, Scott said, nor could they find any shrapnel from that device. 

“Most of the beaches along Crescent City can be covered by ATV and they’re walking around a little bit too and covering as much ground as they possibly can,” he said, using the idiom “needle in a haystack” to describe the search. “(Deputies) are also getting public information out to let people know if they see something suspicious to let us know.”

Scott has been part of an effort involving both city and county officials to crack down on the influx of illegal fireworks since an explosion on South Beach sent 14 people to the hospital with injuries in 2024. 

The sheriff has had deputies stationed on South Beach during the holiday for the past two years and said that, for the most part, it’s been “very very low key and family oriented.” Still, there are some that don’t want to follow the rules, he said.

“We did take a criminal case and confiscated some illegal fireworks,” Scott said. “This year was better than last year and I think it’ll get better every year. But fireworks are dangerous, especially when you get folks that decide they want to dismantle a bunch of small fireworks they buy at a fireworks stand and make something big to go boom.”

Scott said people will often take the gunpowder from safe and sane fireworks, pour it into a CO2 cartridge and include “some kind of little snap device.” It’s then shot up into the air and when it comes back down, it will explode on impact, he said.

The item can be ball-shaped, similar to Ganfield’s description of the device that injured Turner, the sheriff said. Sometimes, instead of exploding on impact, there’s a fuse someone needs to light in order to set it off.

“This particular (device) … all we have is a description that was provided by the victim and his girlfriend,” Scott said. “That’s really all we have — it’s kind of a ball shape and she could see a screw.”

In addition to having his deputies search Del Norte County beaches, Scott is asking the public to be extra cautious. He urged beachgoers to report anything suspicious they may encounter and Dispatch will send a deputy, a firefighter or, potentially a CalFIRE representative to investigate.

“Don’t pick it up,” he said. “A lot of those fireworks, even safe and sane, could have an ember or some portion that didn’t ignite yet and it can still do damage.”

The fundraiser Ashley Turner created for her father on GoFundMe has generated $100,267 of her family’s ask of $130,000. That donation request had increased from an initial ask of about $3,000.

Jason Turner will be out of work for some time as he continues to heal, according to Ashley Turner. He is the sole provider for a family of seven, which includes two school-age children, she said. 

“The road to recovery will be long and difficult with many unexpected expenses along the way,” she wrote. “Funds raised will go directly toward transportation to and from medical appointments, essential medications and hotel stays for him and our family during his treatment and recovery.”

To report a suspicious item on the beach, call Del Norte County Dispatch at (707) 464-4191.